Professional

Ethics
for
Engineers
By
Muhammad Iqbal Uddin
Arif
Profile

• PhD in Environmental
Governance/Sustainable
Development/Climate
Change (in Progress)
• M.Phil. in Governance &
Public Policy
• MA English Literature &
Linguistics
Ethical Theories

Religious
Approach (Islamic Deontological
Utilitarianism
Concept of Ethics
Ethics)
Ethical Theories/Approaches to Ethics
or Different Foundations of Ethics?

• Ethical Theories/Approaches attempt to explain the

existence and facts of ethics and ethical behavior.

• Example: What is right and wrong, and why certain

actions/behavior is termed/considered as ‘Right’ and
others ‘Wrong’ i.e. why ‘Truth’ is looked upon as
‘Right/good’ and ‘Lying’ as ‘Wrong/bad’?

• There’re numerous ethical theories; however, we as part of

our course discuss three such theories/approaches:

• Utilitarianism, Deontological Ethics, Religious

Approach(Islamic Concept of Ethics)
Religious Approach to
Ethics

• The religious approach generally upholds the view that “You did as you were commanded and
right was defined by the religious belief system i.e. by the Divine Authority, which was set out in
the different scriptures. More broadly, religions provide a framework of metaphysical meaning
within which core values and motivations for being moral are set out. Metaphysics involves
beliefs about the ultimate reality of the world.
• Different religions had different ethical stresses and there were, and are, different viewpoints
about what ethics is within each religion. Nonetheless, ethical meaning was tied to religious
beliefs, and there was broad agreement amongst religions about the core ethical attitude,
summed up as respect for common humanity and what is know as the ‘golden rule’.
Religious Approach to Ethics
• Christian. ‘Treat others as you would like them to treat
you’ (Luke 6, 31). ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’
(Matthew 22, 39).
• Hindu. ‘Let not any man do unto another any act that he
wisheth not done to himself by others, knowing it to be
painful to himself’ (Mahabharata, Shanti Parva).
• Confucian. ‘Do not do unto others what you would not
want them to do to you’ (Analects, Book xii, 2).
• Buddhist. ‘Hurt not others with that which pains
yourself’ (Udanavarga, v.18).
• Jewish. ‘What is hateful to yourself do not do to your
fellow man. This is the whole Torah’ (Babylonian
Talmud, Shabbath 31a).
• Muslim. ‘No man is a true believer unless he desires for
his brother what he desires for himself’ (Hadith Muslim,
imam 71–2).
Islamic Approach to Ethics
• In Islam, after ‘Iman’ or ‘Faith’ the second
paramount demand of ‘deen’ or ‘religion’ is ‘good
mannerism’ or ‘purification of character’
• “He, who comes to Him as a believer, having done
good deeds, shall be exalted to the highest ranks…
He will abide forever in the Gardens of eternity…That is
the recompense for those who purify themselves.” (Ta
Ha: 75-76)
• “This Quran guides to the most upright way and gives
good news to the believers who do good deeds, so
that they will have a good reward.” (Al-Isra:9)
Islamic Approach to Ethics

• Malik, Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger

of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him,
said, “I have been sent to perfect good
character.” Source: al-Muwaṭṭa’ 1614,
Musnad Ahmed’ 8729
• “The best amongst you is the one, who is
best in character”. Source: Bukhari’ 3559,
Muslim’ 6033
• Abu Darda reported: The Prophet, peace and
blessings be upon him, said, “Nothing is
heavier upon the scale of the believer on
the Day of Resurrection than good
character. Verily, Allah hates the vulgar,
obscene person.” Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhī
2002
Islamic Approach to Ethics

Life
• Sharia: The Islamic Law- contains rules of
Honour Religion ‘Behaviour’

Sharia • The entire sharia is designed to ‘Protect’

human ‘Welfare’
Family Reason
• Six core universal interests- life, religion,
Wealth reason, wealth, family, honour.
Things/Actions forbidden according to
Quran

• “Say, ‘My Lord has forbidden indecency, both open and

hidden, sin and wrongful oppression and that, without
His sanction, you associate things with Him, and that
you say things about Him without knowledge.” (Al-
A‘raf:33)
• Islamic prohibitions have their goals and values:
Examples:
 Prohibition of consumption of alcohol is meant
preserve human reason and intellect to make
correct moral decisions and not to transgress
other’s rights
 Prohibition of adultery is meant to preserve family
bonds
 Prohibits false accusations is meant to preserve
human dignity and honour, essential for good life.
Islamic Approach to
Professional Ethics
• "Allah commands you to render back your trust to those to whom
they are, and that when you judge between people, you judge with
justice. Allah admonishes you with what is excellent.“ (Ali-Nisa:58)
• "Give full measure and weight justly and defraud not men of their
things, and act not corruptly in the land, making mischief.“
(Hud:85)
• "And let not hatred of a people incite you not to act equitably, Be
just; that is nearer to observance of duty.“ (Al-Ma’idah:8)
• "Fulfill the obligations"(Al-Ma’idah:1)
• "And swallow not up your property among yourselves by false
means, nor seek to gain access thereby to the judges, so that you
may swallow up a part of the property of men wrongfully while
you know.“ (Al-Baqara:186)
 • “And speak the right words.” (Al-
Ahzab:70)
• “Avoid most of suspicion for surely
Continued suspicion in some cases is sin; and
spy not nor let some of you backbite
others.” (Al-Hujurat: 12)
…. • “And follow not that of which thou
hast no knowledge. Surely the
hearing and sight and heart, of all
these it will be asked.” (Al-Isra:36)
• “And help one another in
righteousness and piety, and help
not one another in sin and
aggression, and keep your duty to
God.” (Al-Ma’idah:2)
• “And whose affairs are decided by
counsel among themselves.” (Al-
Shu’ara:38)
Utilitarianism
• This theory suggests that we find the
meaning of ethics by looking at the
consequences. Thus an action is right if it
maximizes the good, producing the
greatest good for the greatest number
(Mill 1806–73).
• “Nothing is right or wrong inherently, but
its capacity to be of ‘Utility’ or lack of it.
• “Utility”- Greatest good/pleasure for the
greatest number
Cases of Utilitarianism
in our culture and
system
• Vani (Urdu/Punjabi:‫)ونی‬,
or Swara (‫) سوارہ‬, is a custom found in
parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan
where girls, often minors, are given in
marriage or servitude to an aggrieved
family as compensation to end
disputes, often murder.
• The “extra-judicial killings or law-
enforcement agencies ‘encounters’
Deontological Ethics or
Kantism

• The deontological approach to ethics argues that duties

are the base of ethics rather than the consequences.
According to Immanuel Kant “Rules should be the
foundation of ethical conduct”
• According to Kant ethical actions follow universal moral
laws- such as don’t lie, don’t steal ….
Our actions are either driven by ‘Hypothetical Imperative’
or by ‘Categorical Imperative’
 Hypothetical Imperative: An action which is
conditional to predetermined or desired result/goal
or based on hypothesis- ‘If you want to get fit then
exercise regularly’
 Categorical Imperative: The action and results are
binding – life= body+soul
Deontological Ethics
or Kantism

• Man – both ‘Rational’ and ‘Moral’

• Kant three Formulations
o First formulation: “act only in accordance with that
maxim through which you can at the same time will
that it become a universal law”
o Second formulation: “Man is an end in himself”- we
must treat humans including ourselves as an end,
rather a means to others ends.
o Third formulation: “the Idea of the will of every
rational being as a will that legislates universal law.”

It combines the others in that (i) it requires that we

conform our actions to the laws of an ideal moral
legislature, (ii) that this legislature lays down
universal laws, binding all rational wills including our
own, and (iii) that those laws are of “a merely possible
kingdom” each of whose members equally possesses
this status as legislator of universal laws, and hence
must be treated always as an end in itself.
The End
•“Self-leaders are still true leaders even
if they have no known followers. True
leaders inspire by the influence of their
characters and general self-made
brands. Leadership is defined by the
virtues of one's behaviour.”
― Israelmore Ayivor